I loved this song ever since I saw Boogie Nights. It plays at the end, when the main characters are trying to sell bogus coke to some dealer guy. They are scared to death because everyone in the room has a semi-automatic pistol on them and they are basically trying to con them. The characters' careers have dried up and all that's left is their coke addiction. This song reminds me of my older brother, who in the same time period as the movie (mid 80's) also had a debilitating coke addiction. The scene--and the song--perfectly encapsulates what I remember of him at the time. Nihilistic, addicted, and terribly, terribly scared. I was only 6 or 7 at the time, he was 16 or 17, but he was unforgettable. Our parents, I learned later, fully believed he would overdose and die any day. There was an overwhelming depression in our home that I can feel in this song.
Compounding it for me is the song's title, and the way it is addressed to a little sister. To me it is a terribly sad song. Life whittled down into pusuit of an addiction--Everyone around you getting mentally ready to mourn your death--not even really wanting to live anymore..while your little sister takes it all in without comprehending.
So I feel better now that I've shared what this song means to me with the entire world. I'm not sure how many people will read it. Maybe Night Ranger--who are probably a bunch of geriatric Q-tips by now with nothing better to do than surf the 'net looking for evidence of their greatness, will read this and be pleased.
So I'm not sticking to the lyrics really but just what it means to me. And the funny thing is, apparently the vast majority of the world has forgotten about this song, judging from the scarcity of posts about it on this site. I don't own it on CD, however, my husband is a bartender and I will go have a drink while he's working and almost always play this on the Juke. Drives all the regulars crazy. People ten years older than me have said it reminds them of slow-dancing in high school. Funny that it could mean something so trite to one person while for me I nearly cry every time I hear it.
I loved this song ever since I saw Boogie Nights. It plays at the end, when the main characters are trying to sell bogus coke to some dealer guy. They are scared to death because everyone in the room has a semi-automatic pistol on them and they are basically trying to con them. The characters' careers have dried up and all that's left is their coke addiction. This song reminds me of my older brother, who in the same time period as the movie (mid 80's) also had a debilitating coke addiction. The scene--and the song--perfectly encapsulates what I remember of him at the time. Nihilistic, addicted, and terribly, terribly scared. I was only 6 or 7 at the time, he was 16 or 17, but he was unforgettable. Our parents, I learned later, fully believed he would overdose and die any day. There was an overwhelming depression in our home that I can feel in this song.
Compounding it for me is the song's title, and the way it is addressed to a little sister. To me it is a terribly sad song. Life whittled down into pusuit of an addiction--Everyone around you getting mentally ready to mourn your death--not even really wanting to live anymore..while your little sister takes it all in without comprehending.
So I feel better now that I've shared what this song means to me with the entire world. I'm not sure how many people will read it. Maybe Night Ranger--who are probably a bunch of geriatric Q-tips by now with nothing better to do than surf the 'net looking for evidence of their greatness, will read this and be pleased.
So I'm not sticking to the lyrics really but just what it means to me. And the funny thing is, apparently the vast majority of the world has forgotten about this song, judging from the scarcity of posts about it on this site. I don't own it on CD, however, my husband is a bartender and I will go have a drink while he's working and almost always play this on the Juke. Drives all the regulars crazy. People ten years older than me have said it reminds them of slow-dancing in high school. Funny that it could mean something so trite to one person while for me I nearly cry every time I hear it.
Ok I'm done now.